With hundreds of different betting sites, finding the best can be confusing. I'll guide you through and find the most suitable bookie for you.
Currie Cup Information
In this blog, we are focusing on the Currie Cup, South Africa's top rugby union competition, which features ten teams competing to be crowned champions.
The Currie Cup was created back in 1891, with the first season coming a year later in 1892.
The tournament includes teams that are either representing an entire province or substantial regions within provinces.
Below, we are going to look at the upcoming season, look back at past champions and look at betting odds to enhance your betting experience with the Currie Cup.
The Best Rugby Betting Sites in the UK 2026
2026 Currie Cup Preview
Who won the Currie Cup?
The reigning champions of the Currie Cup, having won it in 2025, are Griquas. They beat the Lions 27-25 in last season's final at Ellis Park Stadium.
When is the Currie Cup?
The Currie Cup in 2026 will kick off on the 17th of July, the seven rounds will conclude on the 30th of August before the semi-finals on the 4th of September and the Final on the 12th of September.
Who are the favourites to win the Currie Cup?
Given that the last five seasons have seen five different teams be crowned champions, you can expect the market to be tight. You would expect the likes of the Sharks to be prominent in the betting along with Western Province and the Blue Bulls.
Who will win the Currie Cup?
Head over to the OLBG Rugby Tips to see who they are tipping to win, not only the outright winner but also matches throughout the tournament.
Additionally, if you only want to view the tips from the top tipsters, those who have shown a profit on rugby over the past year, then head over to the Best Rugby Tipsters page.
What is the Currie Cup Format?
There is no change to the format, so the 2026 season will be the same as in 2025, when eight teams will compete over seven rounds to decide the regular season table.
The top four teams from that table advance to the playoffs, which are 1st vs 4th and 2nd vs 3rd. The two winners compete in the final to be crowned champions.
Currie Cup Broadcast & Scheduling Info
The Currie Cup matches can be watched live on Sky Sports for UK residents; those at home in South Africa can watch them on SuperSport.
Rugby Betting: Beginner Strategies & Advice
Currie Cup Past Winners
Not many teams in recent history have been able to back up their championship the following year. Since 2008, only the Blue Bulls (2020 & 2021) have been capable of defeating the Sharks in both finals.
The Sharks' win in 2024 moved them to nine titles; there are only three teams that have managed more than ten titles in the history of the tournament.
The Western Province leads the way with 34 titles; they have also been beaten finalists 13 times, and their last success came in 2017.
Next on the list is the Blue Bulls (previously known as the Northern Transvaal), who have made the final 34 times and picked up the title on 25 occasions.
The other team is the Golden Lions, who have also gone under the names Transvaal and Gauteng Lions, and have won 11 titles, although they have lost more finals than they have won, being runner-up 13 times.
| Season | Winners | Score | Runner-up | Venue |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2025 | Griquas | 27-25 | Golden Lions | Ellis Park Stadium |
| 2024 | Sharks | 16–14 | Golden Lions | Ellis Park Stadium |
| 2023 | Free State Cheetahs | 27–17 | Pumas | Toyota Stadium |
| 2022 | Pumas | 26–19 | Griquas | Griqua Park |
| 2021 | Bulls | 44–10 | Sharks | Loftus Versfeld |
| 2020 | Bulls | 26–19 (aet) | Sharks | Loftus Versfeld |
| 2019 | Cheetahs | 31–28 | Golden Lions | Free State Stadium |
| 2018 | Sharks | 17–12 | Western Province | Newlands |
| 2017 | Western Province | 33–21 | Sharks | Kings Park |
| 2016 | Cheetahs | 36–16 | Blue Bulls | Free State Stadium |
Currie Cup Favourite Statistics
The consistency of the favourites has not always been reliable in the Currie Cup. As you can see below, we have had seasons where favourites have won 90% of the games and then others where that drops to as low as just 50%!
The last four seasons have been a bit more consistent, all in the 60s with 65%, 66%, 69% & 61% of favourites winning during those seasons. On average, over the past ten seasons, 67% of favourites have been successful.
If looking at teams, then the Cheetahs have been the most reliable. Over the past ten seasons, they have been favourites in 52 games, and they have gone on to win 38 of those, a 73% win rate.
Three other teams also have win rates over 70% or more when favourites, and those are the Sharks (71%) and the Griquas (70%).
| Year | Favourites | Winners | Win Rate |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2016 | 55 | 42 | 76.36% |
| 2017 | 42 | 29 | 69.05% |
| 2018 | 21 | 19 | 90.48% |
| 2019 | 24 | 12 | 50.00% |
| 2020-21 | 22 | 15 | 68.18% |
| 2021 | 38 | 21 | 55.26% |
| 2022 | 44 | 29 | 65.91% |
| 2023 | 59 | 39 | 66.10% |
| 2024 | 43 | 30 | 69.77% |
| 2025 | 31 | 19 | 61.29% |
| Total | 379 | 255 | 67.28% |
Currie Cup Odds Statistics
Here, we look at how teams perform at certain odds. What we know as bettors is that those shorter in price should win more games, simple as that!
What we see in the chart below is rather surprising, that for the odds of 1.89 or below, only one (1.10 - 1.19) of the nine ranges actually hits the expected percentage, which would indicate the short favourites are not the most reliable.
For the five ranges when the odds are 1.90 or bigger, they all hit the expected percentage, so the bigger odds are more reliable than the shorter odds, which is not something that happens very often.
Those with higher prices generally do alright; those 1.80 or bigger cover seven ranges, five of which are in blue, hence exceeding the expectations.
Tournament Betting Comparison
Here is a comparison between some of the top rugby union tournaments for the winning favourites.
As you can see, the Currie Cup is at the bottom of the pile and the only tournament of those on the list with a win percentage of under 70%.
| League | Games | Winning Favs | Overall Fav % |
|---|---|---|---|
| Womens Six Nations | 138 | 112 | 81.16% |
| Six Nations | 148 | 115 | 77.70% |
| United Rugby Championship | 1,376 | 1,039 | 75.51% |
| Super Rugby | 1,067 | 797 | 74.70% |
| Pro D2 | 2,354 | 1,751 | 74.38% |
| Top 14 | 1,759 | 1,300 | 73.91% |
| Premiership | 1,261 | 897 | 71.13% |
| Currie Cup | 379 | 253 | 66.75% |
Currie Cup Teams
Four of the eight teams for the 2026 Currie Cup will be the four URC teams, who are the Bulls XV, Stormers XXIII, Sharks XV & Lions.
The other four teams will be made up of the top four teams from the 2026 SA Cup, who were Griquas, Pumas, Boland Cavaliers & Cheetahs.
- Team: Boland Cavaliers
- Sponsored Name: Sanlam Boland Kavaliers
- Stadium: Boland Stadium, Wellington (12,000)
The 2025 season was the Boland Cavaliers' first appearance in the Currie Cup since 2016; they are seven-time first division champions and made the semi-finals in their first season back in 2025.
- Team: Bulls XV
- Sponsored Name: Vodacom Bulls XV
- Stadium: Loftus Versfeld, Pretoria (51,762)
The Bulls XV were founded in 1938 and are based in Pretoria. They are 25-time winners of the Currie Cup, with their latest coming in 2021 when backing up their win in 2020.
- Team: Cheetahs
- Sponsored Name: Toyota Cheetahs
- Stadium: Free State Stadium, Bloemfontein (48,000)
Founded in 1895, the Cheetahs are based in Bloemfontein. After going 1-9 in their first ten Currie Cup finals, they have gone 6-1 since 2005, meaning 7 titles to their name, with the latest being in 2023.
- Team: Lions
- Sponsored Name: Fidelity ADT Lions
- Stadium: Ellis Park Stadium, Johannesburg (62,567)
- Alternative: Wits Rugby Stadium, Johannesburg (5,000)
As we have previously touched on, the Lions have made it to 25 Currie Cup finals and have lost more than they have won, with an 11-14 record. Their last success came in 2015. They were founded in 1889 and are based in Johannesburg.
- Team: Griquas
- Sponsored Name: Suzuki Griquas
- Stadium: Griqua Park, Kimberley (11,000)
Founded in 1886, the Griquas are based in Kimberley. This franchise has tasted success four times in the Currie Cup, with their first three titles coming in 1899, 1911 & 1970. Then, after a 55-year wait, they won their 4th title in 2025.
- Team: Pumas
- Sponsored Name: Airlink Pumas
- Stadium: Mbombela Stadium, Mbombela (43,500)
Another relatively new team compared to the others, the Pumas were founded in 1969. They are based in Mbombela, and they have won the Currie Cup just once. That success came in 2022; their only other final appearance was a year later, when beaten.
- Team: Sharks XV
- Sponsored Name: Hollywoodbets Sharks XV
- Stadium: Kings Park Stadium, Durban (54,000)
- Alternative: Woodburn Stadium, Pietermaritzburg (12,000)
Based in Durban, the Sharks XV were founded in 1890. They are one of the Currie Cup teams that also compete in the URC. They are nine-time Currie Cup champions, with their last coming in 2024, and they have been runners-up twelve times!
- Team: Stormers XXIII
- Sponsored Name: DHL Stormers XXIII
- Stadium: Cape Town Stadium, Cape Town (55,000)
- Alternative: Athlone Stadium, Cape Town (34,000)
The Stormers XXIII (Previously Western Province) are based in the South African capital, Cape Town and were founded in 1883. They are the most successful franchise in the Currie Cup with 34 titles; the most recent of those came in 2017. They have made a total of 47 finals.
Currie Cup Records
Most Career Matches in the Currie Cup
Hugh Reece-Edwards, who played for Natal in the 80s and 90s, leads the way; he competed in a total of 165 games.
That is 9 more than Jacques Botes, who finished his career on 156 appearances whilst playing for the Pumas and Sharks.
Most Currie Cup Career Points
Naas Botha, who played for the Northern Transvaal between 1977 & 1992, scored a total of 1,699 points, which makes him the all-time leading Currie Cup points scorer.
Behind him is Willem de Waal, who is more recent, with a career spanning 2002-10, where he played for three franchises; he scored a total of 1,412 points.
Most Currie Cup Career Tries
John Daniels, who played for both the Golden Lions & Boland Cavaliers, is the all-time try scorer in the Currie Cup, having scored a total of 74 during his career.
The closest anyone has come to him was Breyton Paulse, who scored 66 during his career with the WP and then Chris Badenhorst (Free State), who scored 65.
Contributor Information
We are blessed with an excellent team of specialists and experts at OLBG. The data in this Currie Cup Preview & Betting Guide is managed by Andy Powell, who looks after the Rugby Tipsters and results in the Rugby Tips Section. Our Commercial Content Manager, Luke Bradshaw-Lee, is a keen Rugby fan; he fact-checks the article for accuracy and publication. Together, they produce our Rugby Union Previews and Rugby League Previews.
Andy Powell
Expert Guide
Luke Bradshaw Lee
- Your Sports Betting Guide 👍
